Cascade Range

NASA

Smoke Blankets Oregon

Dry thunderstorms that popped up over the Cascade Range on the evening of July 15, 2026, peppered Oregon and Washington with thousands of lightning strikes as they moved east across the states. By the following day, NASA satellites had begun to detect large numbers of wildland fires burning throughout central and eastern Oregon. Though initially small, these blazes strengthened as they were fanned by gusty winds…